The IRS could soon call you about debt collection, and it's not a scam

When the IRS and law enforcement officials issue warnings about phone scams involving tax collection, they always say the same thing: The IRS will never call you out of the blue to demand payment.

That could change, according to legislators concerned about a little surprise tucked into a recently signed federal bill.

A provision in the emergency budget plan, signed into law by President Barack Obama, allows federal agencies to make robocalls demanding payment of back taxes, as well as student loans and mortgage debts.

That provision, says U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, will lead to confusion and increased opportunities for scammers.

Menendez is co-sponsoring a bill dubbed the Help Americans Never Get Unwanted Phone calls (HANGUP) Act, which would repeal Section 301 of the Budget Act of 2015. Section 301 eliminates the current federal requirement that a caller must first get a party's consent before sending autodial or prerecorded calls or texts to cellphones for collection of debts owed to or guaranteed by the federal government.

"People must be protected from over-the-phone predators trying to steal your money," Menendez said in a statement released by his office. "Not only does this budget provision open the flood gates to more nuisance phone calls interrupting dinner and family time, but it blurs the line between what is legit and what is a complete and utter fraud.

The IRS is working to ensure taxpayers aren't confused when the calls begin.

"The IRS is currently reviewing the legislation," agency spokesman Anthony Burke said in a statement. "We are taking steps to begin implementation of the program as soon as feasible and will do our best to implement the new requirements as effectively as possible. To that end, we will do everything we can do to help taxpayers avoid confusion and ensure they understand their rights and tax responsibilities, particularly in light of continuing scams where callers impersonate IRS agents and request immediate payment.

In fact, this is the top scam reported to the Better Business Bureau in 2015, according to Melissa Companick, president and CEO of the BBB's New Jersey office. People are able to report scams to the bureau via the agency's online scam tracker.

"According to BBB Scam Tracker, we've received nearly 2,500 reports of IRS imposter scams from North American consumers this year, which accounts for 23 percent of all scams reported through Scam Tracker," Companick said.

Carneys Point Police Detective Sgt. Dale VanNamee, who spoke earlier this month about the recent spike in scam calls to residents in that township, was surprised to learn about this new power granted to federal agencies and expressed concern that this will make a bad situation worse.

"That's going to open us up to more of this," VanNamee said. "We already have people falling for these scams. That's going to be a mess."

Police and residents around South Jersey have reported an increase in IRS scam calls in recent weeks. The scammers use technology that allows a seemingly legitimate phone number -- such as the IRS or some other agency -- to show up on caller ID. These calls are coming to both landline and cellphones.

"While the provision in the budget specifically refers to cell phone calls, the same prevailing issues would also apply to landline calls," said Menendez spokesman Steven Sandberg. "Both the senator and law enforcement actively involved in pursuing IRS scam cases believe the government calling you on the phone to collect a debt only blurs the line between what is real and fake."

The plan goes against common sense and the advice law enforcement has given residents about handling scam calls, Sandberg said, "and will invariably lead to more people being victimized."